Broadway Casting Director Benton Whitley is back in the classroom on the evening of February 21st, followed by a private/personal one-on-one meeting in the Stewart/Whitley Casting Office for audition feedback, specific career advice, and general industry brain picking. Students will get the opportunity to ask all of the audition and career questions they’ve never had the opportunity to ask in their private meeting with Benton, making sure once and for all, they’re auditioning with their best foot forward.

With a pulse on new and emerging talent in NYC, Benton teaches a two-night intensive (Class One: classroom setting & Class Two: one-on-one private meeting) concentrating on the fundamentals of auditioning for the Musical Theatre, and how it pertains specifically to you, the actor, and the current landscape of commercial theatre here in New York. Expect to learn useful, honest, constructive, and candid insight on everything from: acting a song, head shots and resumes, audition attire, song choice, Union/Non-Union work, finding representation, how to get seen, physical types, audition books, working with accompanists, how to take adjustments in the room, and how an actor can and should use social networking to their professional advantage.

CLASS ONE

Each actor will sing two of their own songs and receive immediate feedback from Benton in a safe and intimate classroom setting. In this session expect to dust off your "go-to audition songs", learn from watching your peers, and replace bad audition habits with skills that will actually help you book jobs.

Class One Date:

Tuesday February 21st, @ 6pm

CLASS TWO

Each actor will be given a 30 minute personal appointment with Benton at the Stewart/Whitley office, in Midtown Manhattan. In this one-on-one meeting each actor will have the rare opportunity to discuss the candid realities of their audition experiences and receive insight on what is happening behind the table. Some of those "I thought my audition went well, so why didn't I get a callback?" questions will be clarified.

Class Two Dates:

Each student will schedule a personal meeting with Benton within two weeks following the initial class.

Both sessions combined cost a total of $200

Class size is extremely limited. To apply for a spot, please email your head shot and resume to beyondthetableNYC@gmail.com.

*Please note this class/1on1 is for educational purposes only, and is not an audition.

For more information on this class and all other things casting visit stewartwhitley.com, the official Facebook page of Stewart/Whitley, and on twitter @ bentoncastman.

WATCH: Audition tips from Benton Whitley as featured on Backstage’s Setting the Scene:

The Most Important Element of an Audition:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xoXuyyUXg1M

Top Dance Audition Tips for Actors:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vo5M8G8BfTE

How does the Broadway casting process work? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnTjKBq1Vew

Do Casting Directors look at Social Media?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-gWdgRya-TM

How do actors get cast by cruise ships?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vEp_k2R4p5U

READ: Audition tips from Benton Whitley and his business partner Duncan Stewart can be found here in the Playbill.com BOOKING IT! article:

Benton Whitley is a Casting Director/Partner at Stewart/Whitley. BROADWAY/NY: The Great Comet, On The Town, Pippin, Chicago The Musical, La Cage Aux Folles, The Radio City Christmas Spectacular, Carnegie Hall West Side Story, The Band Wagon, Carnegie Hall Sings, Pageant; WEST END/UK: Thriller Live, Menier Chocolate Factory; TOURS: Finding Neverland, Into the Woods, Once, Shrek, Elf, Flashdance, Anything Goes, Bullets Over Broadway, The Duck Commander Musical, We Will Rock You; UPCOMING: The Man in the Ceiling (Andrew Lippa/Jeffrey Sellar), Hadestown, Sondheim on Sondheim (Hollywood Bowl), Prince of Egypt, Waterfall, August Rush (John Doyle), John Denver’s Back Home Again; REGIONAL: American Repertory Theater, The Alley Theatre, Bay Street Theater, Theatre Under the Stars (TUTS), Hollywood Bowl, The Ahmanson, Seattle’s 5th Avenue, TheatreWorks, Philadelphia Theatre Company, For The Record productions, and the Broadway-branded shows on Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines.

Prior to forming Stewart/Whitley, Benton worked in the in-house casting department for National Artists Management Company (NAMCO) on various productions in development for Broadway and West End. Previous to this he assisted in the casting of 2009 Broadway revival of Ragtime, and regional world premieres by Randy Newman and Terrance McNally.

Benton has been a TV guest judge and panelist for ABC’s Emmy-winning, “Extreme Weight Loss” and was recently named by ARTINFO.com as one of the "Top 25 Under 35 Emerging Broadway Players”. He is often a guest lecturer and seminar/workshop leader at schools and universities around the country and is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and the University of Michigan Musical Theatre Department. Mr. Whitley is an Artios Award winner and a proud member of the Casting Society of America (CSA). stewartwhitley.com